Record of Proceedings for 10/03/15

FIRST MINISTERS QUESTIONS

Maternity Services

13:51
Janet Finch-Saunders
3. Will the First Minister make a statement on maternity services in Wales? OAQ(4)2162(FM)

13:51
Carwyn Jones/The First Minister
Yes. Our ‘A Strategic Vision for Maternity Services in Wales’, published in September 2011, sets out the Welsh Government’s expectations of NHS Wales in delivering safe, sustainable and high-quality maternity services.

13:51
Janet Finch-Saunders
Thank you, First Minister. Following your comments last week that you had not received a formal request from the community health council for you to intervene in Ysbyty Glan Clwyd and the decision by the board to remove consultant-led maternity services, I wrote immediately to the chief officer, who found your response to be quite bizarre, himself having written to the Minister for health asking him to intervene and commending him on taking forward the matter to a review. However, the CHC’s members and officers met with the deputy chief medical officer last week and were advised that it was not a review; they were not considering statistical or clinical evidence and the decision by the health board to move the service could not be altered. First Minister, you have the power, the authority and, I believe, the moral duty to intervene in this process. Will you do this?

13:52
Carwyn Jones / The First Minister
The proper procedure has now been followed and, of course, we will take on board the CHC’s comments. I think it’s right just to expand a little on this point. The deputy chief medical officer and the chief nursing officer have been to the department and have looked at the situation there. It is not easy reading; Members will see the report that they have produced. There are no trainees there. They complain about the quality of their training, so they will not go back there. There is a real problem in recruiting middle-grade doctors, apart from locums, because of the difficult reputation that the department now has because of the two reports.

But, let’s see how we can be positive here. In Withybush, when there were problems about the provision of 24-hour A&E, the consultants themselves came forward with ideas as to how that service could be continued. I’d invite the consultants in Ysbyty Glan Clwyd to come forward with some ideas now for the local health board to consider as to how the service can be maintained and kept safe, because it’s quite clear that it wouldn’t be in the future. But, if there are ways in which that can be done, and if the consultants to bring those views forward, I’m sure the local health board will give them due consideration.